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100 IS militants killed in airstrikes in Iraq

Published : 09 May 2017, 20:06

DF-Xinhua Report

An armored vehicle is seen in south of the Old City in western Mosul, Iraq, on May 7, 2017. A group of Iraqi Federal Police members fought with the Islamic State fighters in western Mosul in recent days. Iraqi forces battling Islamic State (IS) militants pushed further into western Mosul on Sunday, but due to its narrow streets and heavily populated neighborhoods, it appeared to be a bigger challenge to the Iraqi forces. Photo Xinhua.

One hundred Islamic State (IS) militants were killed on Tuesday during 15 airstrikes by Iraqi jets against IS posts in Iraq's western province of Anbar, said the Iraqi military.

According to intelligence reports, jet fighters carried out 11 airstrikes against IS militant hideouts in the IS-held town of Aana, killing 47 IS militants, said Iraq's Joint Operations Command (JOC) in a statement.

Aana is located 180 km northwest of Baghdad, Iraq's capital city. The warplanes also carried out four further airstrikes against IS posts in the IS-held town of al-Qaim, 330 km northwest of Baghdad, killing 53 IS militants, according to the statement.

The airstrikes targeted IS militants and destroyed general as well as car bomb-manufacturing sites, as well as suicide bombers' safe houses, elaborated the statement.

In late April, the JOC said that Iraqi F-16s and Sukhoi warplanes attacked IS hideouts within and nearby the town of al-Qaim, killing 46 IS militants.

Iraq's security forces' attacks which are backed by the anti-IS international coalition come as a major offensive is underway to drive out IS militants from their main stronghold in Mosul's western area in northern Iraq.